WHAT IS NEO-TRADITIONAL TATTOOING? A GUIDE FROM A LAS VEGAS TATTOO ARTIST
Hows it going? My name is Rog Kelly! I’m an artist at Heritage Tattoo in Las Vegas, Nevada. I specialize in custom Neo-Traditional and Neo-Japanese work in Las Vegas, Nevada and I’m here to be your guide on one of my favorite styles: Neo-Traditional Tattoos. What are they? What makes them neo-traditional and not another style? Why do people like them?
If you’ve ever been drawn to bold, artistic compositions, taylored designs, timeless aesthetics and tattoos that tell a story, you’ve probably come across Neo-Traditional tattoos. As a Las Vegas tattoo artist specializing in this style, I’m here to break down what makes Neo-Traditional so empowering for clients and inspiring for artists, and why it might be the perfect style for your next Tattoo
Traditional vs. Neo Traditional
To Understand Neo-Traditional, one must first have a working definition for American Traditional. American Traditional tattoos are a classic tattoo style characterized by bold black outlines, a limited but vibrant color palette (typically black, red, yellow and green), and simple, iconic imagery. The designs are intentionally flat and simple, making them easy to read from a distance and durable over time.
An old traditional banger of mine from 5 or 6 years ago.
Neo-Traditional Tattoos on the other hand, are a modern evolution of American Traditional Tattoos. The style combines the bold outlines and classic themes associated with traditional, with a modern color palette, a greater level of detail and a more free approach to artistic expression and movement.
Size can be an important factor in what makes something neo traditional. For example, if you told me that you were looking to get a 6 inch long, full bodied neo-traditional Dragon, I would tell you as nicely as possible, that you’re not making any sense! The boldness in neo traditional is very important to the style. Without it, the tattoo would really be more of a fine-line style. As small as the dragon would have to be, you wouldn’t be able to get thicker lines into the piece.
An example of a neo traditional snake design. Lots of flow, variation in line thickness, vibrant colors, readability, and contrast are all present.
Common Subject Matter:
Common Neo-Traditional themes can include the classic subject matter: Ladies, Animals, eagles, skulls, hearts, ships, Roses, Daggers, Tigers, mythical beasts, literary references, Dragons, Cranes, Masks, Wolves, Birds, and more. This is really just a subset of the more classic options. But anything can be drawn in a neo-traditional fashion,the possibilities are endless! I have seen more personalized concepts as well, like Neo-Traditional portraits of loved ones, pets, scenes, and even specific sentimental objects. For projects like this, the underlying tattoo meaning is paramount.
A Very Brief History:
Neo-Traditional tattooing doesn’t have an official starting date. But styles started to emerge allover the world in the late 1980’s, and early 90’s as a natural evolution of American Traditional tattooing. Artists wanted to preserve the enduring readability, bold lines and iconic imagery of Traditional tattoos like roses, daggers, panthers, and pin-up girls but with more artistic flexibility and visual depth.
We can thank some of the first to blaze the trail for the rest of us. Artists Such as Marcus Pacheco (New york- San Fancisco) , The Grime(San Francisco), Chris Conn (Los Angeles), and Uncle Allan (Germany) really created a following for the style in the 90’s. They all helped to build a style that still feels classic, but offers far more room for creativity and customization. There are many that I am sure I am missing. But you can’t name them all!
Style is a loose Fit
It is important to note that the is so much overlap between styles. Artists may take bit and pieces from a plethora of styles. This is one of the building blocks for uniqueness! And this is also why the question “ what kind of work do you do” is so difficult to answer. It is often more productive to see the work for yourself, rather than to have it explained to you. (A little tip If you every find yourself at a cocktail party with a tattooer) My style for example, blends aspects of nouveau, illustrative, comic books, classical art, japanese woodblock and tattooing and neo traditional. And certain influences may show up more or less depending on the tattoo project. Definitions in art are mentioned to be bent and twisted. They are really just guidelines.
Here are some tattoos I’ve done that overlap into other styles:
This Black and grey Neo traditional wolf has aspects of art nouveau and Japanese styles. With the flowey framwork and crest being the nouveau elements and the peonies being a subject often associated with japanese tattooing). It is neo traditional however, because of the bold line-work, expressive story telling and use of black.
This tattoo is also black and grey neo-traditional, but it stills some lighting trickes from realism.
This geisha and hanya piece is also on the neo-traditional spectrum. But it takes imagery from japanese tattooing and makes it into something a bit different.
